Choosing a university: My parents and other influencers

(26 October 2019, The Star)

IT used to be lawyer, doctor, or engineer because mama and papa said so. Then the world began to change. New frontiers in science and technology have dramatically altered the way we work, manufacture, do business, behave and think. As a result, the landscape of learning worldwide is evolving as entire families – not just students – get a grip on future jobs and career paths.

The cohort arriving on campus is facing fresh challenges in courses, content, and careers. Already, observers around the world are on record: most millennials choose their own education and career paths, embracing directions taken by their peers while overriding the dreams of parents. Left out of the equation? Not at all. Today's parents are shaping the equation itself with values and beliefs of their own.

For example, take Gowry Balakrishnan of Kuala Lumpur. Her older son Lashwin Kumaran Gopalerkrishnan, 27, always loved chemistry and chose to study chemical engineering at Universiti Teknologi Petronas (UTP). Her younger son Yuvernash Gopalerkrishnan, 19, always loved physics. He's now a mechanical engineering freshman at UTP.

Encouraged to make choices: From left, Kayshvina, Yuvernash, Gowry, Gopalerkrishnan and Lashwin.

Gowry, a teacher with a master's degree in world literature, and her husband, a quantity surveyor, left those choices to their boys. But early in life, they had channelled some parental structures: the concepts of education, knowledge and success.

"We taught them these things from day one," says Gowry. "Tertiary education is an absolute must and preferably, a degree in a technical field. You could say this was our influence. We believe this is the foundation to pursue their dreams. After a basic degree, they are free to choose any path."

Lashwin, who graduated in 2015, is currently pursuing a master's degree in managerial psychology. Yuvernash already has dreams of venturing into business.

"The overall experience at UTP turned out to be satisfying. The staff are always helpful. We were happy that our sons could pursue volleyball and tennis, their favourite sports, at UTP" says Gowry, whose daughter Kayshvina, 26, is an accountant with a bank.

Peers, says Gowry, have provided healthy competition and were less of a direct influence. "We can see that our boys chose their courses due to their interest in those subjects and we are satisfied that they have good career prospects."

Mustapha Sidin, 59, a retired security guard from Muar, says his input did guide his son Nizam Mustapha towards electrical and electronic engineering but peer influence probably sealed it as the choice. "I accept that today's children are strongly influenced by information from outside of the home," says Mustapha, "but I'm satisfied with Nizam's choice. I found UTP to have good educators, good facilities and most of all, good employability. Sure enough, a month after his graduation in May 2016, Nizam was a working man."

That came as a huge relief as it had taken loans from four different sources to fund Nizam's four-year degree. "There was some hardship as we have five other children but on graduation day, I cried tears of joy as he received his scroll. I never imagined that a security guard like me would see such a day." Nizam is currently pursuing a PhD in electrical engineering at another university while remaining employed at an oil and gas company.

Graduation day is a high point for every parent: Nizam, centre and his parents, Noorizan Mohamad and Mustapha Sidin.

Their choices match my expectations: Siew Hzien Hung (centre) and his parents Siew Chee Kong and Loke Yet Onn on graduation day.

Siew Chee Kong, an Ipoh-based senior manager at a Malaysian telco, says three of his children chose to study at UTP. Their courses choices were made with only a little influence from peers. His children, Siew Hzien Hung, 25, graduated in 2017 in chemical engineering while Siew Ke Xuan, 22, and Siew Ke Hui, 19, are in their final year and foundation year mechanical engineering respectively.

He believes his own influence was to steer them to a professional degree at a reputable university for a fair fee. "But I left them to choose their course based on their own interests and academic performance," says Chee Kong, 57.

"UTP's track record in their fields convinced me that these were right for my children. Overall, I believe these choices match my expectations for them, and they can build good careers through UTP's market-oriented courses."

Chee Kong took the PTPTN route to fund his children's educations. "As with all families, finance is a major factor in the choices we make for our children. The views of other parents also helped to shape my thoughts on education and have the confidence to advise my children."

Money to power education

There's not a parent in the world who will downplay the impact a child's education has on their personal finance. At the heart of the decision-making process – choosing a particular course is, very simply, the ability to pay for it. This is why UTP has its own mechanism to help assist students stay on course, and to relieve parents of the fear of failure.

The university's long-standing Yayasan UTP offers full and partial scholarships to high performers, as well as bursaries to tide over students when they and their families don't have enough money.

UTP's recently developed zakat mechanism helps eligible applicants enrol. In 2018,120 students from B40 families were given full sponsorships amounting to RM2.1mil for foundation studies.

Once enrolled, students in need can seek zakat-sourced funding to be assigned to paying tuition, hostel fees, general expenses and even for overseas internships, a requirement of UTP's academic programmes.

Students can also find paid work through the university-approved jobs portal which has helped many students get by.

As daunting as finance may seem, there are ways to manage, says Ahmad Shareza Abdul Rahman, Maybank Mass Banking, Community Financial Services head. Start right at the planning stage by trying to see the big picture and assess the long-term commitment.

"Start planning early," says Ahmad Shareza. "Most parents see their child's potential and interests by about age 12. Once you have clarity of potential areas (public vs private, local vs overseas), start looking at funding options. Every parent wants a full scholarship for their children, but the reality is that these are hard to come by."

So, parents should have a savings or investment plan upfront with a five to seven-year horizon. Unfortunately, most parents don't do this and rely on their EPF, mortgage refinancing or an education loan at the point of entering university. By this time, parents will have limited options available and may be forced to pay dearly for the loans.

Once enrolled in university, high academic achievement helps offset the tuition fees. Most universities provide scholarships and bursaries for excellent performance.

"The bottom line is to start saving early," says Ahmad Shareza. A portion of that duit raya and ang pow will help go a long way. There are many savings and investment plans in the market today. Talk to qualified and licensed financial advisors for good advice."